When Lucca Ravioli Company announced its plans to shutter at the end of April, the news was another blow to locals who have witnessed a number of longstanding Bay Area restaurants close within the past year.

Between January and Dec. 8, 2018, San Francisco alone had 326 restaurant closures. Over 110 of those closures were restaurants that had been in business for 11 years or more, according to The Chronicle’s Jonathan Kauffman.

Joining the list of 2019 closures were The Nantucket in Crockett, which announced in February it was closing after 89 years, and the upscale Jardinière, which had its last service April 27. Jardinière was in business for 21 years.

"It's a scary time," said Susie Biehler, a Bay Area restaurant marketing and consultant with 30 years of experience. "We're in a real unpredictable market."

The reasons behind the closures varied, but the causes didn't make each closure any less shocking.

There are issues that plague all businesses, not just the longstanding ones, of course. According to a report by the San Francisco's Office of Economic and Workforce Development, the most common challenges restaurants face include:

Employee recruitment and retention

Land use regulations and permitting requirements

Real estate conditions

Increasing competition with online sales and other sources

Demographic changes

With that in mind, I decided to reach out to three longstanding businesses in the city — Sutro's at the Cliff House, Tadich Grill and One Market — to find out how restauranteurs manage to stay ahead of the curve.

In short, they’re not that worried.

“We face high cost, a lot of competition — frankly, it’s what keeps us on our toes,” said Michael Dellar, Managing Partner of One Market. “Offsetting that is that fact that it’s a great place to be. Business is alive and well.”

At their core, these restaurants say they've stayed true to their customers and their staff. Each restaurateur I spoke to credited consistency as their greatest asset.

David Hanna, general manager of the 170-year old Tadich Grill, says one of the charms about dining at the restaurant is that customers can find an entrée they ordered decades ago still withstanding the passage of time.

"Other places treat their menus monthly, weekly and though we change our menu daily, we have our standbys," Hanna said.

Similarly, Ralph Burgin, general managing partner and chef de cuisine at Sutro's, says his restaurant doesn't dabble much with what's trendy. Instead, he says they offer entrees with flavors customers can expect.

"We don't do avant garde, we don't do the latest trend; it's rock solid craftsmanship," Burgin said. "We do play a little bit and keep things interesting but we don't go over it."

In a recent phone call, Dellar told me One Market has done various things to keep the 26-year-old restaurant in the conversation. As a self-proclaimed marketing guy, Dellar says he likes to bring new concepts to the table.

In the past, that’s included dinner specials like the weekly beast, where One Market prepared a whole animal, carved it and served it throughout a weekend. The restaurant also offered half-priced wine last July — all 400 labels, no exceptions, Dellar said.

Both Sutro’s at the Cliff House and Tadich Grill take advantage of social media to reach out to their clients, whether that be through a monthly Instagram competition, as Tadich Grill does, or with help from social media experts that post real-time news about the business, like at Sutro’s.

Additionally, Sutro's started selling their Bloody Mary mix a couple years ago.

"We sell about 20,000 Bloody Mary's a year at the Cliff House," Burgin said. "I started tinkering with the formula and we have a product now, it’s awesome.”

Value is another thing Sutro’s, Tadich Grill and One Market have going for them.

One Market offers a prix fixe lunch deal for $27 that comes with an appetizer and an entree. For an added $5, guests can have dessert too. The restaurant also offers $6 cocktails during lunch service.

Hanna said he’ll often go to other restaurants and order an entrée Tadich Grill offers just to compare. In most cases, he says other restaurants tend to be more expensive or serve smaller portions in comparison.

“It shows me that we’re in the right price category and sets us apart,” Hanna said.

Over the phone, Dellar told me he had a copy of the Chronicle’s Top 100 Bay Area Restaurants for 2003 where One Market was among the businesses mentioned. He started going down the list to name the businesses still open and those that have long closed.

I asked him how it felt to be among the company of S.F. businesses still operating.

“I’m proud. It makes me feel appreciative of our people, our customers and the community at large.”

Dellar says that things have changed in the area around One Market; they used to predominantly serve older professionals in law and accounting. Those offices have since been replaced with tech hubs — along with younger professionals in their 20s and 30s.

Dellar thinks that despite the different crowd, One Market has held on to their devoted customers while embracing the change.

"I think people who discard their dyed in the wool customer run a risk of trying to be something that they're not to a different audience and we've tried to bridge the gap between the two."--